Recently, I have been in a few meetings where we are working on developing a web site. In these meetings, it has been suggested that we skip the wireframe stage and roll right into what the site is going to look like, the design. This kind of thinking stemmed from the notion that the client would not understand what wireframes are and that jumping into design would get us one step closer to launch. This suggestion is a bad one.
First, let’s back up and talk about what a wireframe is. For those looking to build a web site of any size or shape, wireframes are the foundation on which to begin building. Wireframing usually comes after the site architecture has been determined by a site map or flow chart of the web-site’s pages and before the creative design phase.
There are 3 easy ways to describe a wireframe:
- Wireframes are simple black and white layouts that outline the specific size and placement of page elements, site features, conversion areas and navigation for your web site.
- They are devoid of color, font choices, logos or any real design elements that take away from purely focusing on a site’s structure.
- We often say that they are much like a blue print to a home, where you can easily see the structural placement of your plumbing, electrical and other structural elements without any interior design treatments.
Here is an examples of what a wireframe looks like:
Simply overlooking this step in order to get to the look and feel is a huge mistake that would prove disastrous for any web site or any contractor building a home. To reinforce the importance of this phase in a web process, I have outlined seven extremely important reasons on why you need to wireframe.
1. Displays site architecture visually
A site map can be a bit abstract, especially ones that are very large. Taking the site map to wireframe starts the first real concrete visual process for a project. Wireframes turn the abstract nature of a flow chart into something real and tangible without distractions. This step ensures that all parties are on the same page.
2. Allows for clarification of web site features
In many instances, clients may not understand what you mean when you say “dynamic slide show,” “news feeds,” “google map integration,” “product filtering,” “light boxes” and hundreds of other types of features. Wire framing specific project features on a web site provides a clear communication to a client how these features will function, where they will live on the specific page and how useful they might actually be.
Sometimes you may decide to take out a feature once it is wireframed due to the fact that it just does’t work with what your site’s goals are. Seeing the features without any creative influence really allows a client to focus on other equally important aspects of the project and clarifies any expectations about how features will be executed.
3. Pushes usability to the forefront
This is the one of the most important points of the entire wire framing process. Creating wireframes pushes usability to the forefront in showcasing page layouts at their core. It forces everyone to look objectively at a web site’s ease of use, conversion paths, naming of links, navigation placement and feature placement. Wireframes can point out flaws in your site architecture or how a specific feature may work. And this is a great thing.
4. Identifies ease of updates
For clients who purchase a content managed web site this point is especially important. A wireframe will immediately identify how well your site will handle content growth. For example, if you only have ten products offered right now, but in six months you may have 100, you will want your web site to accommodate this growth without impact to the website design, site architecture or usability. Wireframes will identify these important areas of content growth.
5. Helps make the design process iterative.
Instead of trying to combine the functionality/layout and creative/branding aspects of the website in one step, wireframes ensure that these elements are taken in one at a time. This allows clients (and other team members) to provide feedback earlier in the process. Skipping wireframes delays this feedback and increases the costs of making changes because full design mock-ups must be reworked, not just simplified wireframes.
6. Saves time on the entire project
Wireframing saves time in a multitude of ways. Your designs are more calculated. Your development team understands what they are building. Content creation becomes much clearer. You avoid hacks later on in the process. Everyone from the web team, the agency and client are all on the same page about what the web site is supposed to do and how it is supposed to function.
7. Experience shows it works
Building a web site is a process. Wireframing is one of those parts of the web process that should not be skipped, just as you wouldn’t build a house without a blueprint, or live in it without decoration. Each step has an important place in a larger process.
This week it's Nick Haas with 7 reasons why you should consider wireframing before designing/coding a website.
